In France, south of Arles, lies Camargue — a UNESCO-designated biosphere. Camargue is known for many things: its ancient-breed white horses, flamingos (and many other migrating birds), salt production, Camargue red wild rice (referenced in today's perfume Le Chant de Camargue*) and the Course Camarguaise — Camargue's brand of bloodless bull-fighting (or "race"). Though the stately black bulls of Camargue are individually known and are not killed in this "sport," I can't imagine it's much fun to be chased, teased, enraged and prodded under a hot sun in front of thousands of screaming humans.
Bulls — one of the world's unluckiest animals.
L'Artisan Parfumeur describes Le Chant de Camargue like this:
Through his olfactory itinerary, perfumer Alberto Morillas embarks on a journey of discovery, revealing the Camargue in all its glory – Aigues-Mortes, Arles and Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer.
Does Le Chant de Camargue conjure the aromas of Camargue's marshy plain, its famous rice and salt, its iconic animals? Uh. No. Le Chant de Camargue could smell like the region, but only after a Guerlain perfume tanker ran aground and spilled raw white musk into the biosphere. Sea Captain Thierry Wasser...watch where you're going! Another Guerlain alumni and adorer of white musks came to mind as I smelled Le Chant de Camargue: Sylvaine Delacourte would welcome it with open arms into her (white) Musk Collection of scents. I know I'm always picking on Guerlain when it comes to overuse of white musk; these days almost every perfume house has its white musk offerings.
Le Chant de Camargue starts off sickeningly sweet with candied bergamot and "milk" (possessing an eggnog thickness). A hazy sandalwood-white musk aroma arrives next and is joined for a second or two by "salty" and "dry rice" scents (providing but a moment of earthiness to stave off a sugar coma in the wearer). Liquid milk turns to powdered milk in Le Chant de Camargue's base, each phase as cloying and overwhelming as the other. The perfume veers between old-fashioned make-up aromas (on steroids, suffocating) and contemporary lacteous-gourmand musks. Le Chant de Camargue is mostly linear and unrelenting...a white musk lover's dream bottled. Or, if you're me, a white musk hater's incubus.
L'Artisan Parfumeur Le Chant de Camargue Eau de Parfum is $165 for 100 ml.
*Listed fragrance notes of bergamot, Carmargue rice, sandalwood milk.
Note: top image of bull relief from Knossos palace [altered] via Wikimedia Commons.
Only tried it once, and not on skin, but I enjoyed it quite a lot. Mind you, I just don’t hate white musks, so there was nothing sickening in this scent for me.
Do you enjoy any of the other Artisans in this series?
austenfan: haven’t liked any so far…but don’t know if I’ve tried every one.
*hides Sylvie Delacourte scent from Kevin*
Hey Kevin.
Ede: HAHA! Keep it hidden please and in an odor-proof container.
LOL, I love your reviews (and I hate white musk). This one left me picturing the Exxon Valdez disaster except with white musk (in my mind crude white musk looks like marshmallow fluff) instead of oil. I’m sure Monsieur Wasser won’t read this, but I wish he would.
And thank you for saving me from sampling this, I would have been severely disappointed.
I had that exact mental image about the Exxon Valdez.
AD: that’s a GREAT image of billowing white musk fluff!
“White musk lovers dream” ..hard pass. Stage left. Lol. Thank goodness horchata doesn’t come with white musk lol…could you imagine? Lol. That would make it a horror-chata haha.
Omega: I’m gagging as I think of it!
This was a crazy commission! L’AP had to know that Alberto Morillas would do a white musk perfume. Synthetic musks are his wheelhouse, as Mark Behnke describes in this review of Morillas’s latest perfume for his own line, Mizensir:
http://colognoisseur.com/new-perfume-review-mizensir-for-your-love-passionate-ambery-musk/
I’d like to have seen Mathilde Laurent, who created a horse mane accord, take this on.
noz: these white musk bombs must sell…everyone is adding one or two or…to their lines. They seem to be a staple now in collections: citrus, white floral, amber, marine, fruity-floral, incense, oud, WHITE MUSK. I hope the trend fades.
When I think of musk, Donna Karan comes to mind and all of her white musk poisoned apples. 😖
Omega: thankfully, I’ve not come across one of those apples.
Thanks for the public service announcement. This sounds like another one I don’t need to smell. It’s not just because of the white musks. Sometimes I even like them in moderate amounts. It’s more because of the lack of truth in marketing. I love actual olfactory journeys to places I wish I could visit. It’s always such a disappointment to expect that’s what I’m going to smell and then find that I’ve landed at the same boring old laundramat. Sounds like there’s a sticky puddle of spilt milk in this one.
Kathryn: HALLELUJAH and Amen! For L’Artisan to say this smells anything like a marshland is hilarious (and maddening). But why do I always fall for “journey” marketing?????????? Argh.
One line I think fulfills its promises is Monocle/CDG; I’m so looking forward to trying their new Yoyogi perfume. I like every one of their perfumes and would happily own/wear them all.
I’ve been to Camargue this autumn for vacation.
In Saints-Maries-de-la-Mer there is a very strong aroma of Matthiola flower that grows everywhere. You can smell it the minute you get off the bus, the moment you get out of your room, it is literally the most dominant thing – at least in October, when I visited.
It is sweet, but still it is rather pleasant and reminds of some nice French soaps. Maybe they were inspired by this scent
But I have to test this perfume to be sure, and I agree:
bulls race, horse mane, salty lakes with flamingos, wet ground and rice fields could smell much more interesting than some sweet and soapy night flower =)